Grading-machine



W. PILGER.

GRADING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24. 1919.

Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

WV w WM. P/L GER.

W. PILGER.

GRADING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24. 1919.

Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

3 SHEETSSHEET 2.

INVENTOR- Ww. P/L 613/"?v W. PILGER.

GRADING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY24 1919.

1,363,346. Patented Dec. 28,1920.

s SHEET$SHEET a.

INVENTOP 54w. P/l. GER.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM PILGER, OF CENTER, COLORADO.

GRADING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 28, 1920.

Application filed May 24, 1919. Serial No. 299,428.

T all w ham it may concern:

Be it known that I, NLLIAM PILGER, a citizen of the United States,residin at Center, in the county of Saguache and tate of Colorado, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Grading-Machines, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to grading machines used for leveling fields, roadsand other surfaces, and its primary object is to provide in a machine ofthis character an earthscoop which discharges its load at its endopposite to that at which it enters and which is moved to the dumpingposition by a mechanism of simple and highly effective construction.

Other objects of my invention reside in the provision of certainadjustments and other devices which render the machine of practical useunder varying circumstances and conditions.

With these and other objects in view all of which will fully appear inthe course of the following description my invention consists of theconstruction and arrangement of parts which in their preferred form havebeen shown in the accompanying drawings in which like characters ofreference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views andin which Figure 1 is a plan view of my improved grading machine in itspreferred form,

Fig. 2, a section taken on the line 2-2, Fig. 1, and

Fig. 3, a sectional elevation showing a simplified form of the machinesuitable for lighter work.

Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the referencecharacter 2 designates the frame of a carrier which at its rear end issupported upon traction-wheels 3 and at its opposite end upon pivotallymounted caster-wheels 4.

A scoop 5 mounted at the forward portion of the frame is pivotallysupported as at 6 to move about a horizontal axis extend ing beneath itsbottom surface and adjacent its rear end.

The scoop is open at its front to receive the earth which is excavatedby a cutting edge 7 at the forward end of its bottom 8, and its oppositeend is normally closed by a door 9 which swings about hinges at itsupper edge.

The scoop is suspended by longitudinally extensible links 10 from alever 12 made in the form of a gallows frame which at the end of itsparallel side members is fulcrumed in boxes 13 on the side sills of thecarrier.

A Windlass 14 is provided to move the lever about its fulcrum for thepurpose of bringing the scoop to its dumping position, and a chair 15serves to support the lever 111 its normal position of rest in which itextends forwardly of its fulcrum with reference to the operativemovement of the machine.

The windlass which is supported upon a platform 16 at the rear end ofthe carrier, comprises a winding drum 17 mounted between standards 18,and a ratchet 19 which cooperates with an adustable pawl 20 to hold thedrum against retrograde motion.

The lever is connected with the drum through the intermediary of amultiple tackle consisting of pulley blocks 21 fastened at the free endof the lever and on a standard of the Windlass, and a rope 22 which atits ends is fastened to the other standard and to the drum of theWindlass and which is trained around the pulleys. Buffers composed ofpivoted uprights 23, relatively stationary standards 24 and interposedsprings 25 are mounted on the sills of the carrier frame to yieldinglyarrest the movement of the lever when it is raised by the tackle to movethe bucket to its dumping position, and a stop-bar 26 normally engagesthe door at the rear end of the scoop to brace the latter during itsscraping action.

The bar is slidably mounted in brackets 27 on the under side of thelatform which supports the Windlass and t e drivers seat 28, and it isconnected by a rod 29 with a foot lever 30 which by movement about itsfulcrum draws the bar out of engagement with the scoop to permit of itsbeing brought to its dumping position.

A pair of draw-rods 31 at the front end of the frame connected by a link32 provide ready means for sheathing the tractor by which the machine ispulled along the surface to be graded.

In the operation of the machine the parts are normally in the positionshown in Fig. 2,

in which the lever 12 rests upon the chair and the bar 26 engages therear end of the scoop which slants forwardly and digs into the surfacewith the cutting edge at the front end of its bottom plate, it beingunderstood that by lengthening or shortening the link, the depth atwhich the cutting edge penetrates the ground is readily varied.

The forward movement of the machine causes the excavated dirt to enterthe scoop which when full is moved to the dumping position shown inbroken lines in Fig. 2 to discharge its load.

To bring the scoop to this position the lever is raised by winding therope upon the drum of the Windlass after the stop-bar has been retractedby adjustment of its lever. When the scoop moving about its pivotalaxis, nears the perpendicular, its door opens by the weight of the loadand the latter is dumped on the ground.

To subsequently return the parts to their original position the pawl isseparated from the ratchet, thereby permitting the lever with thesuspended scoop to move by gravity until their movement is arrested bythe engagement of the lever with the slanting seat upon which itisnormally supported.

The modified form of my invention illustrated in Fig. 3 is designed forlighter work than the machine hereinbefore described.

The lever is fulcrumed as at 33 upon a block 34 on the frame of thecarrier and held in its. adjusted positions by a hand-adjusted detent 35cooperating with a toothed segment 36 at the rear end of the wheeledframe which is provided with suitable means for sheathing one or moredraft-animals by which the machine is drawn along the surface to begraded.

The scoop is, as in the first form of my invention, suspended from thelever by 1011- gitudinally extensible links. It is pivotally mountedbetween the sills of the frame by means of bolts 35 and it may be madewithout a door to close its discharge end, for reasons of economy andsimplicity in operation.

Having. thus described my invention what I claim and desire to secure byLetters-Patent is:

1. A grading machine comprising in combination with a wheeled carrier, apivoted scoop open at its ends, mechanism to turn the scoop about itspivot to a position in which its rear end is lowermost for the dischargeof its load, and an adjustable stop on the carrier bracing the scoop inits oper ative position.

2. A grading machine comprising in combination with a wheeled carrier, apivoted scoop open at its ends, a hinged door normally closing theopening at the rear end of the scoop, mechanism to turn the scoop aboutits pivot to a position in which its rear end is lowermost for thedischarge of its load, and an adjustable stop on the carrier engagingthe door and bracing the scoop in its operative position.

3. A grading machine comprising in combination with a wheeled carrier, ascoop pivoted near one end, a lever fulcrumed on the carrier, a link onthe lever pivotally connected with the scoop near its opposite end, anda support for the lever.

41 A grading machine comprising in combination with a wheeled carrier, ascoop pivoted near one end, a lever fulcrumed on the carrier, a link onthe lever pivotally connected with the scoop near its opposite end, asupport for the lever, a tackle connected with the lever, and a Windlasson the carrier for lifting the lever off its support'through the mediumof the tackle.

5. A grading machine comprising in combination with a wheeled carrier, apivoted scoop, a bar slidable on the carrier, against the rear end ofthe scoop, and means to lock the harm an adjusted position.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my si gn ature.

WILLIAM PILGER.

